Radiofrequency device

ABSTRACT

A radiofrequency device includes a semiconductor substrate, an inductor structure, a shielding structure, and a mask pattern. The semiconductor substrate includes a first region and a second region. The inductor structure is disposed on the first region of the semiconductor substrate. The shielding structure is disposed on the first region of the semiconductor substrate and located between the inductor structure and the semiconductor substrate in a vertical direction. The mask pattern is disposed on the semiconductor substrate. A first portion of the mask pattern is disposed on the shielding structure and directly contacts the shielding structure, and a top surface of the shielding structure is completely covered by the first portion of the mask pattern.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a radiofrequency device, and moreparticularly, to a radiofrequency device including an inductorstructure.

2. Description of the Prior Art

The micro-processor system comprised of integrated circuits (IC) is aubiquitous device, being utilized in such diverse fields as automaticcontrol electronics, mobile communication devices and personalcomputers. With the development of technology and the increasinglyimaginative applications of electrical products, the IC device isbecoming smaller, more delicate and more diversified.

In the modern society, current semiconductor devices often includeradiofrequency (RF) circuit structures to perform wireless communicationcapabilities. In the RF device, the energy efficiency of the device willbe influenced by the quality factor (Q-factor) of the inductor directly.Therefore, how to improve the Q-factor of the RF device through designmodifications in the structure and/or process is still a continuousissue for those in the related fields.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A radiofrequency device is provided in the present invention. Ashielding structure located under an inductor structure is covered by amask pattern for reducing energy loss and improving Q-factor of theinductor structure.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a radiofrequencydevice is provided. The radiofrequency device includes a semiconductorsubstrate, an inductor structure, a shielding structure, and a maskpattern. The semiconductor substrate includes a first region and asecond region. The inductor structure is disposed on the first region ofthe semiconductor substrate. The shielding structure is disposed on thefirst region of the semiconductor substrate and located between theinductor structure and the semiconductor substrate in a verticaldirection. The mask pattern is disposed on the semiconductor substrate.A first portion of the mask pattern is disposed on the shieldingstructure and directly contacts the shielding structure, and a topsurface of the shielding structure is completely covered by the firstportion of the mask pattern.

These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt becomeobvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading thefollowing detailed description of the preferred embodiment that isillustrated in the various figures and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic drawing illustrating a radiofrequency deviceaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic drawing illustrating a top view of a shieldingstructure of the radiofrequency device according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic drawing illustrating a top view of a shieldingstructure and an inductor structure of the radiofrequency deviceaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 4-7 are schematic drawings illustrating a manufacturing method ofa radiofrequency device according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention, wherein FIG. 5 is a schematic drawing in a step subsequent toFIG. 4, FIG. 6 is a schematic drawing in a step subsequent to FIG. 5,and FIG. 7 is a schematic drawing in a step subsequent to FIG. 6.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention has been particularly shown and described withrespect to certain embodiments and specific features thereof. Theembodiments set forth herein below are to be taken as illustrativerather than limiting. It should be readily apparent to those of ordinaryskill in the art that various changes and modifications in form anddetail may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of thepresent invention.

Before the further description of the preferred embodiment, the specificterms used throughout the text will be described below.

The terms “on,” “above,” and “over” used herein should be interpreted inthe broadest manner such that “on” not only means “directly on”something but also includes the meaning of “on” something with anintermediate feature or a layer therebetween, and that “above” or “over”not only means the meaning of “above” or “over” something but can alsoinclude the meaning it is “above” or “over” something with nointermediate feature or layer therebetween (i.e., directly onsomething).

The ordinal numbers, such as “first”, “second”, etc., used in thedescription and the claims are used to modify the elements in the claimsand do not themselves imply and represent that the claim has anyprevious ordinal number, do not represent the sequence of some claimedelement and another claimed element, and do not represent the sequenceof the manufacturing methods, unless an addition description isaccompanied. The use of these ordinal numbers is only used to make aclaimed element with a certain name clear from another claimed elementwith the same name.

The term “forming” or the term “disposing” are used hereinafter todescribe the behavior of applying a layer of material to the substrate.Such terms are intended to describe any possible layer formingtechniques including, but not limited to, thermal growth, sputtering,evaporation, chemical vapor deposition, epitaxial growth,electroplating, and the like.

Please refer to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a schematic drawing illustrating aradiofrequency device 100 according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. As shown in FIG. 1, the radiofrequency device 100 includes asemiconductor substrate 10, an inductor structure 70, a shieldingstructure SS, and a mask pattern 40. The semiconductor substrate 10includes a first region R1 and a second region R2. The inductorstructure 70 is disposed on the first region R1 of the semiconductorsubstrate 10. The shielding structure SS is disposed on the first regionR1 of the semiconductor substrate 10 and located between the inductorstructure 70 and the semiconductor substrate 10 in a vertical directionZ. The mask pattern 40 is disposed on the semiconductor substrate 10. Afirst portion 40A of the mask pattern 40 is disposed on the shieldingstructure SS and directly contacts the shielding structure SS, and a topsurface TS1 of the shielding structure SS is completely covered by thefirst portion 40A of the mask pattern 40.

In some embodiments, the shielding structure SS located under theinductor structure may be made of an electrically conductive materialfor blocking electric field lines from penetrating the semiconductorsubstrate 10 and reducing coupling capacitance between the inductorstructure 70 and the semiconductor substrate 10. In the presentinvention, the mask pattern 40 covering the shielding structure SS maybe used to reduce energy loss and increasing coupling resistance betweenthe inductor structure 70 and the structure underneath the inductorstructure 70, and the quality factor (Q-factor) of the inductorstructure 70 may be enhanced accordingly.

In some embodiments, the vertical direction Z described above may beregarded as a thickness direction of the semiconductor substrate 10. Thesemiconductor substrate 10 may have a top surface TS and a bottomsurface BS opposite to the top surface TS in the vertical direction Z,and the inductor structure 70, the shielding structure SS, and the maskpattern 40 may be disposed at a side of the top surface TS, but notlimited thereto. A horizontal direction orthogonal to the verticaldirection Z may be substantially parallel with the top surface TS of thesemiconductor substrate 10 and/or the bottom surface BS of thesemiconductor substrate 10.

Additionally, in this description, a distance between the bottom surfaceBS of the semiconductor substrate 10 and a relatively higher locationand/or a relatively higher part in the vertical direction Z is greaterthan a distance between the bottom surface BS of the semiconductorsubstrate 10 and a relatively lower location and/or a relatively lowerpart in the vertical direction Z. The bottom or a lower portion of eachcomponent may be closer to the bottom surface BS of the semiconductorsubstrate 10 in the vertical direction Z than the top or an upperportion of this component. Another component disposed above a specificcomponent may be regarded as being relatively far from the bottomsurface BS of the semiconductor substrate 10 in the vertical directionZ, and another component disposed under a specific component may beregarded as being relatively closer to the bottom surface BS of thesemiconductor substrate 10 in the vertical direction Z.

Specifically, in some embodiments, the radiofrequency device 100 mayfurther include an isolation structure 12, at least one gate electrodeGS, a first spacer structure (such as a spacer structure SP2 shown inFIG. 1), and a second spacer structure (such as a spacer structure SP1shown in FIG. 1). At least a part of the isolation structure 12 may bedisposed in the semiconductor substrate 10 for defining a plurality ofareas separated from one another in the semiconductor substrate 10, suchas defining a plurality of active areas in the second region R2 of thesemiconductor substrate 10, but not limited thereto. The gate structureGS may be disposed on the second region R2 of the semiconductorsubstrate 10, the spacer structure SP1 may be disposed on a sidewall ofthe shielding structure SS, and the spacer structure SP2 may be disposedon a sidewall of the gate structure GS. In some embodiments, a materialcomposition of the spacer structure SP1 may be identical to a materialcomposition of the spacer structure SP2, but not limited thereto. Forexample, a first spacer 32 and a second spacer 34 may be disposed on thefirst region R1 and the second region R2 of the semiconductor substrate10, and the second spacer 34 may be disposed on the first spacer 32. Thespacer structure SP1 may include a first portion 32A of the first spacer32 and a first portion 34A of the second spacer 34, and the spacerstructure SP2 may include a second portion 32B of the first spacer 32and a second portion 34B of the second spacer 34. The first spacer 32and the second spacer 34 may respectively include a single layer ormultiple layers of insulation materials, such as silicon oxide, siliconnitride, or other suitable insulation materials.

In some embodiments, the first portion 40A of the mask pattern 40 may beconformally disposed on the shielding structure SS and the spacerstructure SP1, and a second portion 40B of the mask pattern 40 may beconformally disposed on the gate structure GS, the spacer structure SP2,and the second region R2 of the semiconductor substrate 10. It is worthnoting that, in some embodiments, a plurality of the gate structures GSmay be disposed on the second region R2 of the semiconductor substrate10, and the two gate structures GS illustrated in FIG. 1 may be two gatestructures GS separated from each other or correspond to cross-sectionalconditions of different portions in the same gate structure GS.Therefore, the gate structure GS may be partially covered by the secondportion 40B of the mask pattern 40, and the gate structure GS is notcompletely covered by the second portion 40B of the mask pattern 40.

The mask pattern 40 may include a single layer or multiple layers ofinsulation materials, such as silicon oxide, silicon nitride, siliconoxynitride, or other suitable insulation materials. In some embodiments,the mask pattern 40 may include a first insulation layer 42 and a secondinsulation layer 44 conformally disposed on the first insulation layer42, and a material composition of the second insulation layer 44 may bedifferent from a material composition of the first insulation layer 42.For example, the first insulation layer 42 may be a silicon oxide layer,and the second insulation layer 44 may be a silicon nitride layer, butnot limited thereto. Additionally, in some embodiments, the firstinsulation layer 42 may be regarded as a liner layer, and the secondinsulation layer 44 may be the main mask material. Therefore, the firstinsulation layer 42 may be thinner than the second insulation layer 44,and a thickness of the first insulation layer 42 in the verticaldirection Z may be less than a thickness of the second insulation layer44 in the vertical direction Z, but not limited thereto. In someembodiments, the first portion 40A of the mask pattern 40 may becomposed of the first insulation layer 42 and the second insulationlayer 44 disposed on the first region R1 of the semiconductor substrate10, and the second portion 40B of the mask pattern 40 may be composed ofthe first insulation layer 42 and the second insulation layer 44disposed on the second region R2 of the semiconductor substrate 10.Therefore, a material composition of the first portion 40A of the maskpattern 40 may be identical to a material composition of the secondportion 40B of the mask pattern 40.

In some embodiments, a material composition of the gate structure GS maybe identical to a material composition of the shielding structure SS.For example, a patterned conductive layer 24 may be disposed on thefirst region R1 and the second region R2 of the semiconductor substrate10, the shielding structure SS may include a first portion 24A of thepatterned conductive layer 24, and the gate structure GS may include asecond portion 24B of the patterned conductive layer 24. The patternedconductive layer 24 may include an electrically conductive materialcontaining silicon, such as a doped polysilicon material or othersuitable electrically conductive material, and the patterned conductivelayer 24 may be a patterned conductive polysilicon layer accordingly,but not limited thereto. In some embodiments, the radiofrequency device100 may further include a dielectric layer 22 disposed on the firstregion R1 and the second region R2 of the semiconductor substrate 10, afirst portion 22A of the dielectric layer 22 may be disposed between theshielding structure SS and the semiconductor substrate 10 in thevertical direction Z, and a second portion 22B of the dielectric layer22 may be disposed between the gate structure GS and the semiconductorsubstrate 10 in the vertical direction Z. The dielectric layer 22 mayinclude an oxide layer, such as a silicon oxide layer, or other suitabledielectric materials, and the second portion 22B of the dielectric layer22 may be regarded as a gate dielectric layer.

In some embodiments, the shielding structure SS may be an electricallyfloating conductive structure. For example, the shielding structure SSmay be completely encompassed by insulation materials (such as the firstportion 40A of the mask pattern 40, the spacer structure SP1, and thefirst portion 22A of the dielectric layer 22 described above), but notlimited thereto. In other words, the first portion 24A of the patternedconductive layer 24 and the second portion 24B of the patternedconductive layer 24 may be physically separated from each other andelectrically separated from each other. Additionally, in someembodiments, the mask pattern 40 may be regarded as a blocking layer forblocking the formation of self-aligned silicide layer, and theself-aligned silicide layer may be formed on the gate structure GSwithout being covered by the mask pattern 40 on the second region R2 ofthe semiconductor substrate 10 and formed on the semiconductor substrate10 without being covered by the mask pattern 40. For example, theradiofrequency device 100 may further include a silicide layer 52A and asilicide layer 52B. The silicide layer 52A may be disposed on the secondregion R2 of the semiconductor substrate 10 and directly contact thesemiconductor substrate 10, and the silicide layer 52B may be disposedon the gate structure GS and directly contact the gate structure GS. Thesilicide layer 52A and the silicide layer 52B may includecobalt-silicide, nickel-silicide, or other suitable metal silicide.

In some embodiments, the silicide layer 52B may include a materialconverted from a part of the gate structure GS, but a top surface TS3 ofthe silicide layer 52B may be still higher than a top surface TS2 ofother portions of the gate structure GS in the vertical direction Z, anda top surface TS1 of the shielding structure SS and the top surface TS2of the gate structure GS may be located within the same plane orthogonalto the vertical direction Z, but not limited thereto. Therefore,compared with a condition where a silicide layer is directly formed onthe shielding structure SS, the total electrical resistance of thesemiconductor substrate 10 and the shielding structure may be increasedby the first portion 40A of the mask pattern 40 covering the shieldingstructure SS completely for keeping the silicide layer from being formedon the shielding structure SS, and the energy loss induced by thesubstrate may be reduced by relatively increasing the distance betweenthe inductor structure 70 and the shielding structure (especially whenthe first portion 24A of the patterned conductive layer 24 and asilicide layer formed thereon may be regarded as a shielding structure).In other words, in some embodiments, the shielding structure SS may beformed only with the polysilicon material without including the silicidedescribed above (such as metal silicide). In addition, the Q-factor ofthe inductor structure 70 is proportional to the ratio of the storedenergy to the energy loss in one oscillation cycle (i.e. inverselyproportional to the energy loss in one oscillation cycle). The energyloss may include an energy loss induced by metal and an energy lossinduced by the substrate. The energy loss induced by metal may include,for example, DC loss and loss induced by skin effect, and the energyloss induced by the substrate may include substrate potential currentinduced by electric field and loss induced by eddy current. Therefore,the energy loss induced by the substrate may be reduced by completelycover the shielding structure SS with the first portion 40A of the maskpattern 40 in the vertical direction Z for keeping the silicide layerfrom being formed on the shielding structure SS, and the Q-factor of theinductor structure 70 and the device performance of the radiofrequencydevice 100 may be improved accordingly.

In some embodiments, the radiofrequency device 100 may further include adielectric layer 54 disposed on the first region R1 and the secondregion R2 of the semiconductor substrate 10. A first portion 54A of thedielectric layer 54 may be disposed on the first region R1 of thesemiconductor substrate 10 and cover the first portion 40A of the maskpattern 40, and a second portion 54B of the dielectric layer 54 may bedisposed on the second region R2 of the semiconductor substrate 10 andcover the gate structure 54, the silicide layer 52A, the silicide layer52B, the spacer structure SP2, and the second portion 40B of the maskpattern 40. The silicide layer 52B may be disposed between the gatestructure GS and the second portion 54B of the dielectric layer 54, andthe silicide layer 52B may directly contact the gate structure GS andthe second portion 54B of the dielectric layer 54. Additionally, in someembodiments, the radiofrequency device 100 may further include one ormore contact structures 56 penetrating through the dielectric layer 54on the second region R2 in the vertical direction Z for contacting thesilicide layer 52A and the silicide layer 52B and being electricallyconnected with the silicide layer 52A and the silicide layer 52B. Insome embodiments, the dielectric layer 54 may be used to provide aplanarization effect and has to be relatively thicker accordingly.Therefore, the dielectric layer 54 may be thicker than the mask pattern40, and a thickness of the dielectric layer 54 in the vertical directionZ may be greater than a thickness of the mask pattern 40 in the verticaldirection Z, but not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, the radiofrequency device 100 may further include adummy metal structure 62, an interconnection structure 64, and aninterlayer dielectric layer ILD. The interlayer dielectric layer ILD maybe disposed on the dielectric layer 54 and located on the first regionR1 and the second region R2 of the semiconductor substrate 10. The dummymetal structure 62 may be disposed between the first portion 54A of thedielectric layer 54 and the inductor structure 70 in the verticaldirection Z, and the interconnection structure 64 may be disposed on thesecond portion 54B of the dielectric layer 54. At least a part of thedummy metal structure 62, at least a part of the interconnectionstructure 64, and at least a part of the inductor structure 70 may bedisposed in the interlayer dielectric layer ILD. In some embodiments,the dummy metal structure 62 may be an electrically floating metalstructure, and the interconnection structure 64 may be electricallyconnected with active components (such as a transistor composed of thegate structure GS) and/or passive components on the semiconductorsubstrate 10.

For example, the radiofrequency device 100 may include metal layers(such as a patterned metal layer M1, a patterned metal layer M2, apatterned metal layer M3, a patterned metal layer M4, a patterned metallayer M5, and a top metal conductive layer TM shown in FIG. 1) disposedon the dielectric layer 54 and stacked in the vertical direction Z. Thedummy metal structure 62 may include a first portion M11 of thepatterned metal layer M1, a first portion M21 of the patterned metallayer M2, a first portion M31 of the patterned metal layer M3, a firstportion M41 of the patterned metal layer M4, and/or a first portion M51of the patterned metal layer M5. The interconnection structure 64 mayinclude a second portion M12 of the patterned metal layer M1, a secondportion M22 of the patterned metal layer M2, a second portion M32 of thepatterned metal layer M3, a second portion M42 of the patterned metallayer M4, and a second portion M52 of the patterned metal layer M5.Additionally, the inductor structure 70 may include a first portion TM1of the top metal conductive layer TM, and a second portion TM2 of thetop metal conductive layer TM may be disposed on and electricallyconnected with the interconnection structure 64.

In some embodiments, the radiofrequency device 100 may includeconnection plugs (such as a connection plug V1, a connection plug V2, aconnection plug V3, a connection plug V4, and a connection plug V5 shownin FIG. 1) and the above-mentioned metal layers (such as the secondportion M12 of the patterned metal layer M1, the second portion M22 ofthe patterned metal layer M2, the second portion M32 of the patternedmetal layer M3, the second portion M42 of the patterned metal layer M4,the second portion M52 of the patterned metal layer M5, and the secondportion TM2 of the top metal conductive layer TM) alternately stackedand disposed in the vertical direction Z and electrically connected withone another. In addition, the dummy metal structure 62 may be anelectrically floating metal structure and electrically separated fromthe interconnection structure 64, and the first portion and the secondportion of each patterned metal layer described above may be physicallyand electrically separated from one another. Additionally, in someembodiments, the inductor structure 70 may be electrically separatedfrom the second portion TM2 of the top metal conductive layer TM, andthe inductor structure 70 may be electrically connected withcorresponding components, such as a component formed on the secondregion R2 of the semiconductor substrate 10 or a component formed on anarea outside the first region R1 and the second region R2 of thesemiconductor substrate 10, via other portions of the patterned metallayers described above.

In some embodiments, the substrate 10 may include a silicon substrate, asilicon germanium semiconductor substrate, a silicon-on-insulator (SOI)substrate, or a substrate made of other suitable materials. Theisolation structure 12 may include a single layer or multiple layers ofinsulation materials, such as silicon oxide, silicon nitride, or othersuitable insulation materials. The dielectric layer 22 may include anoxide layer, such as a silicon oxide layer or other suitable dielectricmaterials. The dielectric layer 54 may include a single layer ormultiple layers of insulation materials, such as silicon oxide, siliconnitride, or other suitable dielectric materials. The interlayerdielectric layer ILD may include a single layer or multiple layers ofdielectric materials, such as silicon oxide, silicon nitride, siliconcarbonitride, fluorosilicate glass (FSG), low dielectric constant(low-k) material or other suitable dielectric materials. The low-kmaterial mentioned above may include a dielectric material withrelatively lower dielectric constant (such as dielectric constant lowerthan 2.9, but not limited thereto), such as benzocyciclobutene (BCB),hydrogen silsesquioxane (HSQ), methyl silesquioxane (MSQ), hydrogenatedsilicon oxycarbide (SiOC—H), and/or porous dielectric materials. Thecontact structure 56, each patterned metal layer, each connection plug,and the top metal conductive layer TM described above may respectivelyinclude a low resistance material and a barrier layer. The lowresistance material described above may include materials withrelatively lower resistivity, such as copper, aluminum, and tungsten,and the barrier layer described above may include titanium nitride,tantalum nitride, or other suitable barrier materials, but not limitedthereto.

Please refer to FIG. 2, FIG. 3, and FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a schematicdrawing illustrating a top view of the shielding structure SS of theradiofrequency device according to an embodiment of the presentinvention, and FIG. 3 is a schematic drawing illustrating a top view ofthe shielding structure SS and the inductor structure 70 of theradiofrequency device according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. As shown in FIGS. 1-3, in some embodiments, the first portion24A of the patterned conductive layer 24 may be a pattern with mirrorsymmetry for uniformly controlling the shielding effect of the shieldingstructure SS, but not limited thereto. In addition, the inductorstructure 70 may include sections 70S without being directly connectedwith one another, the sections 70S may be electrically connected withone another via other portions of the patterned metal layers describedabove or the sections 70S may be electrically connected with differentcomponents, respectively. It is worth noting that the design of thepattern of the shielding structure SS and the pattern of the inductorstructure 70 in this invention is not limited to the conditionsillustrated in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, and the shielding structure SS and theinductor structure 70 with other pattern features may be appliedaccording to other design considerations. Additionally, in someembodiments, the first region R1 may be regarded as an inductor regionin the radiofrequency device 100, the second region R2 may be regardedas a circuit region in the radiofrequency device 100, and there may benot any active component (such as a transistor) disposed in the firstregion R1 and/or disposed above the first region R1 for reducingnegative influence on the operation of the inductor structure 70.

Please refer to FIGS. 4-7 and FIG. 1. FIGS. 4-7 are schematic drawingsillustrating a manufacturing method of a radiofrequency device accordingto the first embodiment of the present invention, wherein FIG. 5 is aschematic drawing in a step subsequent to FIG. 4, FIG. 6 is a schematicdrawing in a step subsequent to FIG. 5, FIG. 7 is a schematic drawing ina step subsequent to FIG. 6, and FIG. 1 may be regarded as a schematicdrawing in a step subsequent to FIG. 7. The manufacturing method of theradiofrequency device in this embodiment may include but is not limitedto the following steps. As shown in FIG. 4, the isolation structure 12,the dielectric layer 22, the patterned conductive layer 24, the firstspacer 32, and the second spacer 34 may be formed on the semiconductorsubstrate 10. The shielding structure SS and the gate structure GS maybe formed with the first portion 24A and the second portion 24B of thepatterned conductive layer 24, respectively. Therefore, the shieldingstructure SS and the gate structure GS may be formed concurrently by thesame process for simplifying the related manufacturing process, and thetop surface TS1 of the shielding structure SS and the top surface TS2 ofthe gate structure GS may be substantially located with the same planeorthogonal to the vertical direction Z. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 4and FIG. 5, the mask pattern described above may be formed, and at leasta part of the gate structure GS and at least a part of the second regionR2 of the semiconductor substrate 10 may not be covered by the maskpattern 40.

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 6, a metal layer 50 may be formedglobally, and the metal layer 50 may directly contact the second regionR2 of the semiconductor substrate 10 without being covered by the maskpattern 40 and the gate structure GS without being covered by the maskpattern 40. As shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, a thermal treatment may becarried out for reacting the metal layer 50 with the gate structure GSand the semiconductor substrate 10 so as to form the silicide layer 52Band the silicide layer 52A described above, and the metal layer 50 maybe removed after the silicide layer 52A and the silicide layer 52B areformed. In some embodiments, the metal layer 50 may include cobalt,nickel, or other suitable metal materials, and the silicide layer 52Aand the silicide layer 52B may include cobalt-silicide, nickel-silicide,or other silicide of the metal material of the metal layer 50.Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 1, the dielectric layer 54,the contact structure 56, the interlayer dielectric layer ILD, the dummymetal structure 62, the interconnection structure 64, the inductorstructure 70 and/or other required components may be formed for formingthe radiofrequency device 100 shown in FIG. 1.

To summarize the above descriptions, according to the radiofrequencydevice in the present invention, the mask pattern may be used to coverthe shielding structure underneath the inductor structure for reducingthe energy loss and improving Q-factor of the inductor structure.

Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerousmodifications and alterations of the device and method may be made whileretaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the abovedisclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and boundsof the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A radiofrequency device, comprising: asemiconductor substrate comprising a first region and a second region;an inductor structure disposed on the first region of the semiconductorsubstrate; a shielding structure disposed on the first region of thesemiconductor substrate and located between the inductor structure andthe semiconductor substrate in a vertical direction; and a mask patterndisposed on the semiconductor substrate, wherein a first portion of themask pattern is disposed on the shielding structure and directlycontacts the shielding structure, and a top surface of the shieldingstructure is completely covered by the first portion of the maskpattern.
 2. The radiofrequency device according to claim 1, wherein theshielding structure is an electrically floating conductive structure. 3.The radiofrequency device according to claim 1, wherein the mask patterncomprises a first insulation layer and a second insulation layerconformally disposed on the first insulation layer.
 4. Theradiofrequency device according to claim 3, wherein a materialcomposition of the second insulation layer is different from a materialcomposition of the first insulation layer.
 5. The radiofrequency deviceaccording to claim 3, wherein the first insulation layer is thinner thanthe second insulation layer.
 6. The radiofrequency device according toclaim 1, further comprising: a gate structure disposed on the secondregion of the semiconductor substrate; and a first spacer structuredisposed on a sidewall of the gate structure, wherein a second portionof the mask pattern is conformally disposed on the gate structure andthe first spacer structure.
 7. The radiofrequency device according toclaim 6, wherein a material composition of the gate structure isidentical to a material composition of the shielding structure.
 8. Theradiofrequency device according to claim 6, wherein the shieldingstructure comprises a first portion of a patterned conductive layer, andthe gate structure comprises a second portion of the patternedconductive layer.
 9. The radiofrequency device according to claim 8,wherein the patterned conductive layer is a patterned conductivepolysilicon layer.
 10. The radiofrequency device according to claim 6,further comprising: a second spacer structure disposed on a sidewall ofthe shielding structure, wherein the first portion of the mask patternis conformally disposed on the shielding structure and the second spacerstructure.
 11. The radiofrequency device according to claim 10, whereina material composition of the first spacer structure is identical to amaterial composition of the second spacer structure.
 12. Theradiofrequency device according to claim 6, further comprising: adielectric layer disposed on the semiconductor substrate, wherein afirst portion of the dielectric layer is disposed on the first region ofthe semiconductor substrate and covers the first portion of the maskpattern, and a second portion of the dielectric layer is disposed on thesecond region of the semiconductor substrate and covers the gatestructure and the second portion of the mask pattern.
 13. Theradiofrequency device according to claim 12, wherein the dielectriclayer is thicker than the mask pattern.
 14. The radiofrequency deviceaccording to claim 12, further comprising: a silicide layer disposedbetween the gate structure and the second portion of the dielectriclayer, wherein the silicide layer directly contacts the gate structureand the second portion of the dielectric layer.
 15. The radiofrequencydevice according to claim 12, further comprising: a dummy metalstructure disposed between the first portion of the dielectric layer andthe inductor structure in the vertical direction.
 16. The radiofrequencydevice according to claim 15, wherein the dummy metal structure is anelectrically floating metal structure.
 17. The radiofrequency deviceaccording to claim 15, further comprising: an interconnection structuredisposed on the second portion of the dielectric layer, wherein thedummy metal structure comprises a first portion of a patterned metallayer, and the interconnection structure comprises a second portion ofthe patterned metal layer.
 18. The radiofrequency device according toclaim 17, wherein the dummy metal structure is electrically separatedfrom the interconnection structure.
 19. The radiofrequency deviceaccording to claim 17, wherein the inductor structure comprises a firstportion of a top metal conductive layer, and a second portion of the topmetal conductive layer is disposed on and electrically connected withthe interconnection structure.
 20. The radiofrequency device accordingto claim 19, wherein the inductor structure is electrically separatedfrom the second portion of the top metal conductive layer.